Dick Kitz’s Newton Creek Railroad

Dick Kitz started this layout in 1970. It has been moved once to the present site. The primary railroad is Union Pacific, but he also has Southern Pacific. The railroad scenery is Colorado-based with narrow, as well as standard gauge. It’s in HO and HOn3, DCC. Most of the rail is hand-laid, although the newer […]

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Dick Kitz’s Newton Creek Railroad

Dick Kitz started this layout in 1970. It has been moved once to the present site. The primary railroad is Union Pacific, but he also has Southern Pacific. The railroad scenery is Colorado-based with narrow, as well as standard gauge. It’s in HO and HOn3, DCC. Most of the rail is hand-laid, although the newer […]

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The mystery of vertical split rims

Vertical split rims affect the outer edge of the wheels and are caused by pent-up pressures and stresses in the wheel material. Two photos, Transportation Safety Board of Canada A rare wheel defect is posing a mystery for researchers. The problem is called a vertical split rim, but why it happens and how to prevent […]

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The fine science of friction control

Hydraulic flange greasers are activated when a wheel rolls over an actuator, as shown on CSX’s Indianapolis Line Subdivision. Two photos, Eric Powell Forgive the pun, but it’s a slippery slope that railroads have to deal with, in terms of rail and flange lubrication. Too much or too little grease on the track can cause […]

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Minnesota steam engine to use Big Boy fire grates NEWSWIRE

Grates from the firebox of Union Pacific Big Boy 4-8-8-4 No. 4014 are going to use in the firebox of Milwaukee Road 4-8-4 No. 261. Though of different size and design, they were both built by the American Locomotive Co. in the 1940s and can share certain components. Erik Hoofnagel MINNEAPOLIS — In an example […]

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Computer desktop wallpaper from the May 2017 Model Railroader

Click on the links at left to download the computer desktop wallpaper. A Union Pacific freight rolls past a Midwestern cornfield on contributing editor Pelle Søeborg’s new HO scale Daneburg Subdivision model railroad. Click on the links below to download the image sized appropriately for your computer screen. Download the 1600 x 900 image Download […]

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New model trains for the week of March 23, 2017

Atlas Model Railroad Co. HO Bombardier Transportation ALP-45DP dual-mode locomotive HO scale locomotives Bombardier Transportation ALP-45DP dual-mode locomotive. NJ Transit. Four road numbers. Illuminated, directional light-emitting-diode headlights, ditch lights, and red marker lights; positionable non-functioning pantograph; factory-applied railings, air horn, and antenna; modeler-installed grab irons with drilling template; and Kadee couplers. Direct-current model with 8-pin […]

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Bachmann SoundValue HO scale EMD E7A

Bachmann SoundValue HO scale EMD E7A Our review sample is sharply decorated in the Pennsyvlania RR Tuscan five-stripe paint scheme. Separate detail parts include handrails, horns, and windshield wipers. For those modeling passenger service in the last half of the 20th century, General Motors’ Electro-Motive Division E-units are essential. This EMD E7A from Bachmann Trains […]

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Trains Presents: West Chicago

Join Trains Magazine Assistant Editor Brian Schmidt for a day trackside at West Chicago, Ill., in July 2016. We’ll see Canadian National and Union Pacific freight action, along with ubiquitous Metra commuter trains. We’ll also look at JB Tower, which guards the junction of the two freight carriers. […]

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Trains Presents: West Chicago

Join Trains Magazine Assistant Editor Brian Schmidt for a day trackside at West Chicago, Ill., in July 2016. We’ll see Canadian National and Union Pacific freight action, along with ubiquitous Metra commuter trains. We’ll also look at JB Tower, which guards the junction of the two freight carriers. […]

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